2000
#3,898
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,376
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.10
Rare Last name
Seidel
A German occupational surname referring to a maker or seller of beer mugs or tankards.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 8,989 Americans carry the last name Seidel. That puts it at #4,374 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.62 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 38,130 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Seidel surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Seidel with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
9.0K
1 in 38,130
Census rank
#4,374
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
7.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 7,839 bearers of the surname Seidel in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.62 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4374th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Seidel, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.3%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Seidel
The surname SEIDEL has its origins in Germany, and it is derived from the Middle High German word "sidel," which means "dwelling" or "homestead." This name likely originated in the late medieval period, around the 13th or 14th century, when surnames began to become more common.
The name SEIDEL was initially used to identify individuals based on their place of residence, suggesting that the earliest bearers of this name lived in a particular dwelling or settlement. It may have also been used as a descriptive surname, referring to someone who lived in a small or modest home.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name SEIDEL can be found in the "Stuttgarter Hirschen" manuscript from 1342, which mentions a person named "Cunrat Seideler." This document suggests that variations of the name, such as "Seideler" or "Seydelmann," were in use in the 14th century.
The name SEIDEL has also been associated with various place names throughout Germany, such as Seidel in Saxony and Seidelsbach in Bavaria. These place names may have influenced the development and spread of the surname.
Notable individuals with the surname SEIDEL include:
1. Johann Julius Seidel (1808-1879), a German mathematician and astronomer known for his contributions to celestial mechanics.
2. August Seidel (1820-1886), a German architect and urban planner who designed several notable buildings in Berlin.
3. Wanda Seidel (1918-2009), a Polish-German painter and graphic artist known for her abstract expressionist works.
4. Johannes Seidel (1846-1918), a German politician and lawyer who served as the Minister President of Bavaria from 1912 to 1918.
5. Philipp Seidel (1828-1896), a German-American artist and engraver known for his portraits and landscapes.
While the surname SEIDEL has its roots in Germany, it has since spread to other parts of the world through emigration and migration. However, this report focuses primarily on the historical origins and early bearers of the name within the German-speaking regions.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Seidel
Among Census respondents with the surname Seidel, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.3%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Seidel bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Seidel surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.3% · 7,238
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 257
- Two or more races2.8% · 221
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 63
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 35
- Black or African American0.3% · 25
Timeline
Historical Census data for Seidel
Seidel appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#4,204
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,430
+54 bearers (+0.6%)
Per 100,000 2.86
Rank movement Down 306 places
2020
#4,374
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,839
-591 bearers (-7.0%)
Per 100,000 2.62
Rank movement Down 170 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,898 | 8,376 | 3.10 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #4,204 | 8,430 | 2.86 | +54 bearers (+0.6%) | Down 306 places |
| 2020 | #4,374 | 7,839 | 2.62 | -591 bearers (-7.0%) | Down 170 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Seidel surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #4,204 | #4,374 | -4.0% |
| Count | 8,430 | 7,839 | -7.0% |
| Per 100K | 2.86 | 2.62 | -8.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Seidel bearers went from 8,430 to 7,839 (-7.0% change). The surname moved down 170 positions in the national ranking, going from #4,204 to #4,374.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Seidel
FAQ
Seidel surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Seidel?
Name Census estimates that about 8,989 living Americans carry the surname Seidel. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 38,130 residents.
How common is Seidel?
Seidel ranks #4,374 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.62 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 7,839 people with the surname Seidel. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (8,989), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.62 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.62 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Seidel.
Has Seidel become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Seidel went from 8,430 recorded bearers to 7,839. That is a decrease of 591 (-7.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #4,204 to #4,374.
What does the Census say about the background of Seidel?
Among Census respondents with the surname Seidel, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.3%) and Two or More Races (2.8%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Seidel in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.3% (7,238 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Seidel appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.3%), Hispanic (3.3%), Two or More Races (2.8%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Seidel (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Seidel mean?
A German occupational surname referring to a maker or seller of beer mugs or tankards. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Seidel (2.62 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many Americans have the surname Seidel?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.